Cable-way excavator



w. H. CRAWFORD.

CABLE WAY EXCAVATOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY1h1920.

1,406,725. f Patented Feb. 14, 1922.

INVENTOR. W. H.6rawford ATTORNEYS Cit UNITED STATES PATENT orrlea.

'WILLIAM H. CRAWFORD, 0F LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

CABLE-WAY EXGAVATOR.

new and useful Improvements in Cable-Way Excavators, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to cableway excavators and has for its object the provision of an extremely simple but efiicient mechanism for-raising a load and carrying the same along a cableway and then dumping the load at any desired point. p e

* The invention will be readily understood from the following description of the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of an excavator constructed in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 22 of Fig.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the bucket of the excavator.

Fig. 4 is a transverse section on the line 4 1 of Fig. 1.

In the drawings the surface level of the ground to be excavated is represented at A, the bucket of the excavator being filled in the excavation B and dumping at the point C. The excavator includes a cableway 1 supported above the surface level and extending across the excavation B, and the dump C with the end of the cableway adjacent the dump C higher than the opposite end of the cableway, so that after the bucket of the excavator has been dumped the carriage movable along the cableway and supporting the bucket will return by gravity down theinc'lined cableway to the desired point above the excavation B. The cableway is shown as connected to masts 2 and 2 which may be suitably braced as shown at 8.

A carriage 4 is movable along the cable way 1, this carriage being shown comprising side frames between which are journaleol grooved wheels 5 adapted to rest upon the cableway so as to suspend the frame of the carriage beneath the cableway. A pulley 6 is journaled in the frame 4, this pulley, preferably, comprising two sheaves 7 and 8. A block 9 is suspended from the pulley 6 as by a cable 10 extending from an eye 11' in the block up over one of the sheaves of pulley 6, say the sheave 7, and thence down- Specific'ation of Letters Patent. i Patented Feb; 1

Application filed Ma 11, 1920, Serial No. 280,465

wardly over the sheave 11 of bloclr-9 and then up and over sheave 8 of pulley 6. The cable then extends along the upward incline of cableway 1 and over a sheave 12 journaled to the mast 2 at the upper end of the inclined cableway,and the cable then, preferably, extends-down along the mast -and around a suitable sheave 13 and thence to any desired means for drawing in and paying out the cable.

The bucket of the excavator is shown at 15 as a closed bucket except for its open end 16 through which'it is filled. Supporting connections are provided between the sides of the open end of the bucket and the block 9, these supporting connections beingshown as cables 17. -A dumping cable'18 is connected to the rear end of the bucket 15 and then passes up over a sheave 19 journaled in the carriage 4: and then extends to a suitable point for adjusting the length of said cable. For this purpose the cable may be passed around the mast 2 and 2 at the lower end of the inclined cableway 1, any desired length of cable being arranged between the mast and the bucket 15. A stop 20 is provided upon the cableway 1 for limiting the gravity movement of the carriage 1 along the cableway, this stop being shown as adjustable along the cableway and comprising clamping sections 20 and 20 clamped upon the cableway as by bolts 22.

In operation the stop 20 is so positioned upon the cableway 1 as to stop carriage 4 above the point of excavation, and cable 10 is then paid out so. as to lower block 9 and the bucket 15 carried thereby so that the bucket will rest upon the surface to be excavated. The cable 18, when the parts are in this position, will be slack so as to lower the rear end of the bucket and thereby permit the latter to rest flat against thesurfa'ce to be excavated.

The bucket may be shifted by hand along the surface of the ground to the exact position which it is desired to excavate and the bucket may then be filled either by shoveling or by forcing the open end of the bucket into the material which is to be removed. When the bucket has been filled the cable 10 is drawn in thereby raising the block 9 and the bucket until the block abuts against the carriage 4:. Continued drawing in upon cable 10 will then cause the carriage 4 and the block 9 and bucket 15, supported thereby,

same, the slack of cable 18 will have been taken up so as to draw the cable taut and thereby elevate the rear end of the bucket 15 so as to swing the latter into the position shownin dotted lines inFig. 1 in which position the open end of the bucket extends downwardly so that the material within the bucket will be dumped. The cable 10 being now released, the carriage and the bucket carriedthereby will move by gravity back down the cableway 1 until the carriage abuts against the stop 20 when the bucket will be again lowered to the surface to be excavated.

My cable excavator is especially adapted for loading and unloading cars and excavating or filling deep depressions or holes in the ground, I and making excavations under bridges and the like, although, as will be understood, it is not limited to sucn purposes.

Various changes may be madewithout departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed, 7

What is claimed is: 1. A cableway excavator comprising an inclined cableway, a carriage movable along said cableway, an excavator bucket, a supporting cable for said bucket carried by said carriage and arranged to first elevate the bucket and then move the bucket and carsaid cableway, an excavator bucket, a sup porting cable for said bucket carried by said carriage and arranged tofirst elevate the bucket and then" move the bucket and carriage upwardly along the cableway, and a dumping cable secured to the bottom of said bucket and supported by said carriage,,said cable being slack as the carriage and bucket moves up the inclined cableway and becoming taut so as to elevate the bottom of the bucket for dumping the latter at a selected point along said inclined cableway.

8. A cablewaygexcavator comprising an inclined cableway,acarriage movable along said cableway, two pulleyson the carriage, a block, a third pulley on the block, a cable attached to the block and 'running around the pulleys, a bucket having its top connected to the block by flexible connectionaa pulley at the high end of the cableway over which the cable passes,.a guide pulley on the carriage, and a dumping cable connected to the bottom of the bucket andrunning over the guide pulley to the lower end of the cableway.

In testimony name to this specification.

WILLIAM H. CRAWFORD.

whereof I have signed my 

